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Monday, December 3, 2012

One Small Thing- Honey

Let's talk about Honey! One thing that you can do this week during your Homesteading Quest is to think about honey. I have been purchasing local honey from an older gentlemen about 20 minutes from me, for as long as I can remember. My folks use to buy from him, and now I do to. I remember when I was small he would save the honeycomb for us and it was such a treat to chew on that sweet yumminess...

there have been lots of studies done that show eating "local" honey can help with allergies, as you are actually ingesting a very small amount of the local allergens through that honey, as that is what the bee is using to pollinate. I've never had allergies, but that makes sense to me.

Of course is would be wonderful if you harvested your own honey. I have longed for that, but it hasn't made it to the top of my must do list just yet, so for now I'm satisfied buying it from my elderly friend.

Honey is great to use as a sweetener for things like hot teas, yogurt, and baked goods. I will also say that a yummy dollop of honey on freshly baked biscuits on a cold morning really gets the day off to a good start. My girls also like honey bread, which is just a thick slice of homeade bread with melted butter and honey on it. Hey, not the healthiest in the world, but better than a twinkie and at least I know where it came from.

Honey is also great for many illnesses. My family uses it as we start to feel the approach of a cold, sinus infection or sore throat. My kids often ask for a teaspoon of honey for their "sore thoat" , which I know is just a plot for me to dispense the liquid gold, but I normally oblige....

So my challendge this week is to
-research local sources of honey for you
- experiment with ways to use honey in your families favorite meals, snacks and drinks

5 comments:

Hi Rachel! Great ideas on using honey! We're novice beekeepers, as this has been out first year to raise them. We are fortunate that our neighbor, who has many hives, is our mentor. We learn new things all the time! I am grateful for our healthy hive! I don't go in, just my hubby. I think I may be allergic to the stings! Hopefully, eating the honey will help me with allergies! Blessings from Bama!

We are able to buy local raw honey from the Amish, and some friends just brought us a half-gallon jar of their own honey. They just started bee-keeping not too long ago, and I'm so excited for them to have their own honey!

We use honey many of the ways you mentioned. I've been putting a teaspoon of honey with minced garlic whenever there's a cold going through my family. It works great for prevention. :)

Our entire family suffers from allergies, and I also have fibromyalgia, bursitis and arthritis. I use local tupelo honey in my coffee and hot tea. And with the two allergy medications I take, I hardly get sick anymore. It is difficult for me to go to lots of different stores or markets, I tire easily, but the grocery store in my neighborhood sells the tupelo honey.